"Soupir" by Tournier–Revelation!

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Tagged: pedal harp pieces which can be played on lever harp

This topic has 3 replies, 2 voices, and was last updated 5 years, 11 months ago by balfour-knight.

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September 14, 2015 at 9:01 pm #190305

balfour-knight
Participant

Hello Everyone!

In a past forum, I asked if there was anyone who tunes in E flat on the lever harp who would try to play “Soupir” and let us know if it is possible. I still do not know the answer to that question, but I did discover that on a C-tuned lever harp, one can put the harp in E Major (four sharps) and play “Soupir” very beautifully! All the accidentals are possible, and for those of us who love to flip many levers, it is very rewarding to play this gorgeous piece on lever harp. I even like it better on my Music Makers’ Large Gothic than I do on my L&H pedal harp, because of the brilliance and clarity.

I hope some of you will try this lovely piece on your lever harps and discover its great beauty. I will now feature it in my lever harp concerts like I do H. Renie’s “Conte de Noel” at Christmas time!

Best regards to you all,
Balfour

September 14, 2015 at 10:03 pm #190306

Gretchen Cover
Participant

Balfour, I know you did this only to avoid a possible Cb:)

September 15, 2015 at 8:18 pm #190324

balfour-knight
Participant

Ha, ha, Gretchen! 🙂
You are right–there are definitely no C flats on a lever harp, whether you tune in C or E flat! So you would have to use B natural, ha, ha! That accentuates my hang-up about “C flat is B natural,” you know. Only on pedal harp can you play a C string and get a C flat, so that totally explains things–thank you for noticing, friend Gretchen!

Interesting for E flat lever harpists trying to play “Soupir,” in the last line (or “system”) there are harmonics on middle C flat with the left hand, followed by a B flat immediately. It would be terribly awkward to fix a B natural for that C flat and then have to change it to the B flat which is also a harmonic. I might consider tuning an actual C flat on middle C, temporarily for this piece.

For C-tuned lever harps playing this in the Key of E, this is no problem. You have C and C sharp available!

Okay, friends, let me know how you like this piece on lever harp!

Cheers,
Balfour

May 8, 2018 at 2:29 pm #217197

balfour-knight
Participant

Update to this “old thread,” ha, ha! Josh Layne did it–check out his Harp Tuesday episode about this lovely piece. He also has a Youtube video of him playing it on lever harp! Way to go, Josh, my friend!

Harp Hugs,
Balfour
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